Death row convict moves SC for curative plea to be heard in open court in Nirbhaya case

One of the convicts in the Nirbhaya case, Pawan Gupta who filed his curative plea before the Supreme Court on February 28, has sought a direction that his petition should be heard in an open court as the case is related to the death penalty, said AP Singh, convict's lawyer.

"The apex court had on Saturday fixed the curative petition for a hearing on Monday at 10.25 am in a chamber by a five-judge bench, headed by Justice N V Ramana. Pawan Gupta had filed the curative petition before the top court on Friday, seeking its direction to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment," AP Singh told ANI.

The five-judge bench headed by Justice NV Ramana will also comprise of Justice Arun Mishra, Justice RF Nariman, Justice R Banumathi and Justice Ashok Bhushan.

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READ | Nirbhaya Case: Convict Pawan Gupta Files Curative Plea To SC, 3 Days Prior To Execution

Pawan Gupta files curative petition ahead of hanging

Convict Pawan Gupta had on Friday filed a curative petition before the apex court seeking to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment. He is the fourth convict in the case to file a curative petition. The Supreme Court had already rejected the curative petitions of the other three convicts.

This move followed after death warrant was issued for the four convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya case -- Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Pawan Gupta, and Mukesh Singh, and they are slated to be hanged at 6 am on March 3 at Delhi's Tihar Jail.

READ | Nirbhaya Rape Case: Supreme Court To Hear Centre's Plea For Separate Executions Of Convicts

Additionally, the Supreme Court has also scheduled for March 5 hearing on a petition filed by Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), seeking directions to execute the convicts separately.

A 23-year-old paramedic student 'Nirbhaya' was gang-raped inside a running bus by six persons on December 16, 2012, in Delhi. The victim was severely assaulted and thrown out on the road along with her male friend and succumbed to her injuries a few days later.

READ | Nirbhaya's Parents React To SC Order Over Centre's Plea, Hope For Guidelines By Top Court

(with inputs from agencies)